Friday, November 25, 2005
The November 2006 election to fill the open 6th Congressional District seat is about a year away, but national Democrats and Republicans are already in attack mode when it comes to the other party's leading candidate for the job.
National Republican Congressional Committee officials say the 12-county 6th District, including Columbiana County and a portion of Mahoning County, is their No. 1 target in the country as far as picking up a Democratic district. The seat is currently held by U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland of Lisbon, D-6th, a 2006 gubernatorial candidate. National Democrats say the position is one of their top priorities as far as retaining a seat being vacated by a Democrat.
Ohio House Speaker Pro-Tempore Charles Blasdel of East Liverpool is clearly the leading Republican for the seat. On the Democratic side, state Sen. Charles Wilson of St. Clairsville is currently the top candidate for the job.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee pitched me an article early last month to ask Blasdel if he accepted money from former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. A Texas grand jury indicted DeLay for criminally conspiring to make $190,000 in illegal contributions to Texas Republican statewide candidates in 2002.
I didn't bite saying Blasdel's congressional campaign report had to be filed shortly, and if he received money from DeLay or a political action committee run by the embattled U.S. House member I'd write about it then.
Blasdel raised $236,950 in this year's third quarter with half of the money coming from PACs, including those run by House Majority Leader Roy Blunt and House Speaker Dennis Hastert. None of his money came from DeLay or DeLay PACs.
Even so, it didn't deter the DCCC from attacking Blasdel for taking money from special interest groups including $3,000 from gas and energy PACs, $2,000 from tobacco PACs, and $1,000 from drug company PACs.
The $6,000 is 2.5 percent of the money Blasdel raised as of Sept. 30.
Without any shame, Bill Burton, DCCC's communications director, wrote in an e-mail to those covering this race: "With the special interests shelling out thousands and thousands of dollars to congressional candidate Chuck Blasdel, it certainly appears that they will get a stronger return on their investment in Blasdel than Ohio families have."
In the same e-mail, Burton describes this PAC money as "Blasdel's laundry list of special interest donors." Six PACs equal a laundry list? Apparently Blasdel doesn't have much of a wardrobe.
Other DCCC e-mails ask how Blasdel would have voted on various House bills even though the election for the congressional post is about a year away.
Don't think for a second that the National Republican Congressional Committee is more reasonable than the DCCC.
The NRCC sent e-mails about Wilson and his campaign contributions.
Ed Patru, an NRCC spokesman, wrote that Wilson's money is coming from "some of the most pro-abortion, pro-gay marriage, anti-Second Amendment liberals in the country."
Patru says 6th District voters overwhelmingly oppose abortion on demand, restrictions on gun ownership and oppose gay marriage. Patru's accusation is Wilson is supported by liberal politicians who don't share the same views as 6th Congressional District voters. [While the 6th District includes the southeast portion of Ohio, considered a conservative region, I don't know how anyone can definitely say its residents overwhelmingly oppose abortion on demand or gun ownership restrictions.]
The "liberal PACs" listed by Patru are run by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, DCCC Chairman Rahm Emanuel and House Democratic Caucus Chairman Bob Menendez.
The grand total of money from the "liberal PACs" is $8,500 of the $220,591 Wilson raised as of Sept. 30. That's 3.9 percent of the money Wilson raised for his campaign.
If the entities that contribute money to congressional campaigns influence the candidates, the Republicans should be worried about Wilson's influence over himself. As of Sept. 30, Wilson has given $107,500 to his campaign, or 48.7 percent of the amount raised by his congressional committee.
I've got a feeling this is going to be a rough campaign.